Shirt collar and method of making same

ABSTRACT

A shirt collar or like garment item having a seamed outer edge is made by superposing inner and outer plies on one side of an interlining, superposing a panel of one-sided fusing fabric on the other side of the interlining, and stitching the assembly by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining. The assembly is then turned by turning the inner ply over the seam, and the collar or like item is pressed.

United States Patent Dowsett 154] SHIRT COLLAR AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME [72] lnventor: Reg H. Dowsett, Kitchener, Ontario,

Canada [73] Assignee: John Forsyth Co., Ltd., Kitchener,

Ontario, Canada 221 Filed: June3, 1971 21 Appl.No.: 149,654

[52] [1.8. Cl ..2/l3l, 2/143 [51] Int. Cl. ..A4lb 3/00 [58] Field of Search.....2/143, 131, 132,116, 98, 123

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,470,950 5/1949 Pfeffer ..2/1 31 1 151 3,693,191 1 51 Sept. 26, 1972 2,769,979 11/1956 Driesbach ..2/l43 X 3,170,] 66 2/1965 Weiss ..2/132 3,289,213 12/1966 Backstrom ..2/l43 X Primary Examiner-James R. Boler Attorney-Maybee 8L Legris [5 7] ABSTRACT A shirt collar or like garment item having a seamed outer edge is made by superposing inner and outer plies on one side of an interlining, superposing a panel of one-sided fusing fabric on the other side of the interlining, and stitching the assembly by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining. The assembly is then turned by turning the inner ply over the seam, and the collar or like item is pressed.

6 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures SHIRT COLLAR AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME This invention relates to multi-ply garment items and to methods of making the same.

One example of a garment item of the kind to which the invention relates is a shirt collar of the turned down type.

Such a collar may comprise a number of plies or panels of fabric, including an interlining to give body to the collar, which are superposed and sewn together. The collar so formed has an attachment edge by which it is stitched to the neckband of a shirt in the case of an attached collar, or to a separate neckband in the case of a separable collar, anda seamed outer edge which is shaped to provide a pair of collar points. As worn, the collar is folded down along the line of the attachment edge to form a cape over the neckband, and encircles the neck of the wearer so that the collar points are adjacent to one another at the front of the wearer.

In the case of soft collars of this type, in order to prevent the collar from losing its shape rapidly, it is usual to provide an interlining of a material having rather more rigidity than the soft, fabric outer plies of the collar, the inter-lining being of relatively openmesh fabric to provide lightness and a degree of flexibility. The interlining is usually cut on the bias, since otherwise there is a tendency for the collar to crease when the wearer puts it on. Such an interlining tends to stretch, however, and the stretching leads to puckering of the collar along its seamed outer edge.

According to the present invention the above-mentioned disadvantages are overcome by providing a panel of one-sided fusing fabric which is'stitched and fused to the inner side of the interlining, that is to say, the side adjacent to the inner ply of the collar. Theinvention is characterized by the fact that the interlining hasa marginal edge which coincides with the seamed outer edge of the collar, and a plurality of spaced tabs projecting from the marginal edge by which the plies are stitched to the interlining. The constructionhas the particular advantage that the plies, interlining, and panel of one-sided fusing fabric may be seamed in one operation.

A one-sided fusing fabric is a fabric which has been chemically treated on one side only so that that side of the fabric may be caused to adhere to another, suitably prepared, fabric by the application of heat and pressure.

The method of making a multi-ply garment item in accordance with the invention comprises essentially the following steps:

cutting a fabric blank to form an interlining having a marginal edge conforming to the seamed outer edge to be formed and a plurality of tabs projecting from the marginal edge,

superimposing the inner and outer plies in edge-coincident relation on one side of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining extending to the coincident edges of the lies, p superimposing on the other side of the interlining a panel of one-sided fusing fabric in edge-coincident relation with the plies, and subsequently fusing the panel to the interlining,

seaming the inner and outer plies and the panel by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining thereby being stitched to the plies and the panel,

and turningthe item right side out by turning the inner ply over. the marginal edge of the interlining to cover said other side and form the seamed outer edge of the item.

The panel of one-sided fusing fabric may be fused to the interlining either before or after the plies are seamed to the blank. Thus, the fusing fabric may be fused to the blank by the application of heat and pressure immediately after it is stitched to the blank, or alternatively in a final collar-pressing operation.

Although special reference is made herein to collars, it will be apparent to those skilled in theart that the invention is applicable to othergarment items also, such as cuffs.

One embodiment of the invention as applied to a composite, soft collar of the turned down type, will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is anexploded perspective view showing the components of the collar;

FIG. 2 shows the components of FIG. 1 in superposedrelation, at a stage during the making of the collar; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the finished collar.

As shown in FIG. 3, the collar 1 has an inner, attachment edge 2, by which it may be sewn to a neckband, andaseamed, outer edge consisting of a slightly curved, longitudinal edge portion 3 and two slightly divergent, short edge portions 4 and S. The edge portion 3 defines with the edge portions 4 and 5 a pair of collar points 6, 7, which when the collar is worn meet at the front of the wearers neck.

The collar is essentially of composite construction, comprising inner and outer plies, which may be linen or cotton cloth, and an interlining confined between the plies. Details of the construction will become apparent from the following description of the method by which 7 the collar is made.

In making the collar, a fabric blank 8 is cut on the bias from an open-mesh lining material having a permanent press resin finish, so as to form the interlining. The interlining is cut to the shape shown so as to provide an attachment edge portion 9, a marginal edge 10 conforming to the seamed outer edge of the finished collar, and a plurality of short tabs 11 projecting from the marginal edge 10 by equal predetermined amounts. On one side of the interlining 8 are superposed the inner and outer plies 12, 13 in edge-coincident relation, and a panel of one-sided fusing fabric 14 is superposed on the other side of the interlining. The panel 14 is somewhat narrower than the plies 12, 13 and the interedge portions 3, 4 and 5 of the finished collar.

As best illustrated in FIG. 3, the components of the assembly are superposed so that the edges of the plies l2, l3 and of the panel 14 coincide, and the marginal edge 10 of the interlining 8 is spaced from the coincident edges by a uniform distance corresponding to the width of the tabs 11. The tabs thus serve to locate the interlining with respect to the other components of the assembly.

When the plies, interlining, and panel have been superposed as shown in FIG. 2, they are seamed together in one stitching operation. The single seam 16 so made conforms closely to the marginal edge 10 of the interlining but does not extend through the interlining except at the tabs 11. The seam l6 lies as close to the marginal edge of the interlining as possible.

The panel 14 is subsequently fused to the interlining, and this may be done at any time after the strip is stitched in place, but preferably during the final pressing of the collar.

The collar is next turned right side out in the known manner by turning the inner ply 12 over the marginal edge and the panel 14 so as to cover said other side of the interlining and form the seamed outer edge of the collar. FIG. 3 illustrates the collar after it has been so turned. The collar is finally pressed by the application of heat and pressure. During the pressing operation the panel 14 becomes fused to the interlining 8, although as previously mentioned, the panel might have been fused to the interlining at any convenient stage.

In its final form the collar comprises inner and outer plies, 12, 13, an interlining 8 confined between the plies, a panel of one-sided fusing fabric 14 stitched and fused to one side of the interlining and extending along a longitudinal edge 10 thereof adjacent to the seamed outer edge of the collar. It will be seen that the seamed outer edge of the collar is formed by the collar having been turned right side out so that the inner ply 12 extends over the edge of the interlining to cover its inner side. The collar is finally adapted for use by sewing it to the neckband of a shirt, or to a separate neckband, at its attachment edge.

The interlining need not be of single ply thickness but could be made up of two or more plies of the interlining fabric. For example, in one embodiment of the invention it is advantageous to form the interlining of two plies of fabric cut to the required shape and superposed, the superposed plies of interlining material constitutin g a panel corresponding to the panel 14 of the illustrated embodiment. If the interlining panel is formed of two plies, the plies are preferably each formed with tabs, corresponding to the tabs 11, which are staggered with respect to one another along the marginal edge of the panel. The plies forming the panel may be sewn together during the single seaming operation.

What I claim as my invention is:

l. A garment item having an attachment edge and a seamed outer edge, comprising inner and outer plies, an interlining confined between the plies, and a panel of one-sided fusing fabric fused to the inner side of the inner lining, that is to say the side adjacent to the inner ply, the plies, the interlinin g and said panel being superposed and stitched together by a single line of stitching, the interlining having a marginal edge which coincides with said line of stitching and a plurality of tabs projecting therefrom by which the interlining is stitched to the plies and the panel, the inner ply being folded over the line of stitching to define said seamed outer edge.

2. A garment item according to claim 1, wherein the inner and outer plies are both stitched to the outer side of the interlining and the panel of one-sided fusing fabric is stitched to the inner side of the interlining.

3. A garment item according to claim 2, wherein the item is a shirt collar of the turned down type.

4. A method of making a garment item consisting of inner and outer plies and an interlining confined between the plies, the item having an attachment edge andaseame outeged e which method ompr'ses;

cuttinga abnc lan to orm an inter inmg avinga seaming the inner and outer plies and the panel by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining thereby being stitched to the plies and the panel,

and turning the item right side out by turning the inner ply over the marginal edge of the interlining to cover said other side and form the seamed oute edge of the item.

5. The method claimed in claim 4, wherein the panel of one-sided fusing fabric is fused to the interlining subsequently to the step of turning the inner ply over said marginal edge.

6. A method of making a shirt collar of the turned down type having an attachment edge and a seamed outer edge, the collar comprising inner and outer plies and an interlining confined therebetween, which method comprises:

cutting a fabric blank to form an interlining having a marginal edge conforming to the seamed outer edge of the collar to be formed, and having a plurality of spaced tabs projecting from said marginal edge,

superimposing the inner and outer plies in edge-coincident relation on one side of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining extending to the coincident edges of the plies,

superimposing on the other side of the interlining a panel of one-sided fusing fabric in edge-coincident relation with the plies,

seaming the inner and outer plies and the panel by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining thereby being stitched to the plies and the panel,

turning the collar right side out by turning the inner ply over the marginal edge of the interlining to cover said other side and form the seamed outer edge of the collar, and

pressing the collar with the application of heat to fuse the strip of one-sided fusing fabric to the interlining. 

1. A garment item having an attachment edge and a seamed outer edge, comprising inner and outer plies, an interlining confined between the plies, and a panel of one-sided fusing fabric fused to the inner side of the inner lining, that is to say the side adjacent to the inner ply, the plies, the interlining and said panel being superposed and stitched together by a single line of stitching, the interlining having a marginal edge which coincides with said line of stitching and a plurality of tabs projecting therefrom by which the interlining is stitched to the plies and the panel, the inner ply being folded over the line of stitching to define said seamed outer edge.
 2. A garment item according to claim 1, wherein the inner and outer plies are both stitched to the outer side of the interlining and the panel of one-sided fusing fabric is stitched to the inner side of the interlining.
 3. A garment item according to claim 2, wherein the item is a shirt collar of the turned down type.
 4. A method of making a garment item consisting of inner and outer plies and an interlining confined between the plies, the item having an attachment edge and a seamed outer edge, which method comprises: cutting a fabric blank to form an interlining having a marginal edge conforming to the seamed outer edge to be formed and a plurality of tabs projecting from the marginal edge, superimposing the inner and outer plies in edge-coincident relation on one side of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining extending to the coincident edges of the plies, superimposing on the other side of the interlining a panel of one-sided fusing fabric in edge-coincident relation with the plies, and subsequently fusing the panel to the interlining, seaming the inner and outer plies and the panel by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining thereby being stitched to the plies and the panel, and turning the item right side out by turning the inner ply over the marginal edge of the interlining to cover said other side and form the seamed outer edge of the item.
 5. The method claimed in claim 4, wherein the panel of one-sided fusing fabric is fused to the interlining subsequently to the step of turning the inner ply over sAid marginal edge.
 6. A method of making a shirt collar of the turned down type having an attachment edge and a seamed outer edge, the collar comprising inner and outer plies and an interlining confined therebetween, which method comprises: cutting a fabric blank to form an interlining having a marginal edge conforming to the seamed outer edge of the collar to be formed, and having a plurality of spaced tabs projecting from said marginal edge, superimposing the inner and outer plies in edge-coincident relation on one side of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining extending to the coincident edges of the plies, superimposing on the other side of the interlining a panel of one-sided fusing fabric in edge-coincident relation with the plies, seaming the inner and outer plies and the panel by a single seam conforming to the marginal edge of the interlining, the tabs of the interlining thereby being stitched to the plies and the panel, turning the collar right side out by turning the inner ply over the marginal edge of the interlining to cover said other side and form the seamed outer edge of the collar, and pressing the collar with the application of heat to fuse the strip of one-sided fusing fabric to the interlining. 